labor day weekend in atlanta

we decided to go to atlanta to see family & friends for ldw since we had free time off of work, and it had been 4+ months since our last trip.  we were miraculously packed & ready to go when dave got home, so we hit the road.  our road trip was crazy as usual- ian did not do very well.  luckily, we made a stop halfway down in murfreesboro, tn to see dave's cousin who had just moved down there to start school at middle tennessee state university.  

we ended up getting to my mom & dad's house pretty late, and finally we were able to get everyone settled into bed.  since  thursday (our anniversary) was spent in misery on a road trip, we were looking forward to a date night on friday.  we planned a movie & dinner, but the movie ended up having to be pushed back.  we went back & forth over where to eat dinner, but ended up picking an old favorite with six feet under.  I had delicious calamari tacos!  we decided to follow up dinner with dessert- and for that we went somewhere new.  we ended up heading to flip burger and having the milkshakes!  dave had a nutella & burnt marshmallow milkshake, and i went with the krispy kreme.  YUM! 

saturday i had lunch with a dear friend.  we spent 4 hours telling stories, catching up and giggling over yummy mexican food.  it was the only friend i saw the entire trip.  i had a blast with her, and it was tons of fun, but at the same time it was really sad.  i've always had this fear that i would eventually become irrelevant to my friends at home and people would forget about me because we've been away for so long.   that evening we watched the georgia game.  not good. 

sunday we traveled to see my grandparents, aunt, uncle & cousin.  ian had a really good time running around- and swimming in the pool!  he loves the pool!  dave & i may have had more fun in the pool- it was like being a kid again going down the slide and doing crazy diving board jumps! 

we came back monday evening and dave & i took our movie night.  we went to see the help.  loved it.  i'm pretty excited to read the book now.  if i can finish what i'm reading now....

tuesday we took our little guy to the aquarium.  he did pretty well.  he didn't seem to impressed with many of the animals, but he did love the penguins!  when we got up in the tube, it was so cute to suddenly hear him say "hi birdy!!"  so cute. 

and with that, our whirlwind trip was over.  it was back to chicago- a trip that went much smoother than our trip down, tg.  can't wait to plan our next trip- probably around the holiday!  woo!

be prepared for photo overload...  

 telephone!

 wild man!

 this photo is so funny b\c ian was pumped about this giant blow up bulldog, until he got within 10 feet of it.

 enjoying the aquarium

 creepy eyes in the penguin tube!

 ian and dave with bernie & billie

 ooh.  more fish!

 exhausted!

 sweet shark hats!

 varsity!

 reading with granddaddy

 and grandma

family!

and then i ran a triathlon

yes.  me. 

i don't even know when this all began, but it began with my husband.  one night we were sitting in bed and dave said, "i want us to run a triathlon."  i'm sure i thought to myself how insane he was, but he wouldn't let it go, so i did what i always do- i researched it.  and then, somehow... i agreed.  we started training in february spending 6 days a week at the gym.  we chose a race done by our local park district.  5 long months of training, and now i guess we can call ourselves triathletes.  sprint triathletes.  it was tough, but so worth it.  i had 2 goals for the race:  1.  finish.  2.  finish in under 2.5 hours.  i accomplished both!  although i was near the bottom of my age group- i didn't finish last, and i didn't finish last overall! 

swim-  400 m.  the swim was probably the toughest.  i'm not an incredible swimmer- i lack a lot of skill, and i usually end up swallowing water.  we trained pretty hard for the swimming and then discovered 2 days before the race that we had been training in a pool that was HALF the size of the pool we were actually going to swim in, and that we had been swimming HALF the distance.  really, really, really dumb.  so i basically had to swim double what i had been practicing for 5 months.  so dumb.  the water is choppy and it's pretty hard to swim w\ that many people to a lane.  i had a really tough time. 

bike-  15 mi.  i was probably the most prepared for this part.  dave & i had spent the last couple weekends doing rides and we did a few that were around 15 miles that i felt really good about.  it was definitely hard riding w\o someone to cheer you along and push you.  i had to be that for myself.  i had to keep singing "don't stop, don't give up" (from yo gabba gabba) during the tough parts- and it was tough.  very hilly!  i was pretty much dead after the ride, but i was passing people, and that made me feel good!

run-  5k.  this was definitely my weakest event as i am NOT a runner.  i unfortunately wrecked my legs during the bike and was totally unprepared to run.  :(  i ended up speed walking 95% of the run b\c i could hardly use my left leg.  it was also super muggy by that point, but i kept pressing on- i would run when i could, and then walk again.  the "run" went by super quickly, and before i knew it, i was running over the finish line into dave's arms in tears!  i did it!  and while i'm a bit disappointed with my times- i was definitely one of the slowest overall, i just know i need to keep working. 

dave's self-portrait after finishing the race.  he finished in just over 90 minutes!!

 hobbling in on my bike.  boy were my legs wobbly.

 transition 2.  bike to run.  getting my helmet off so i could hit the road again

i had slowed down and realized how close i was!

 run!  run! 

 sweet victory crossing the finish line

after!  we did it!

30 before thirty- how did i do

last updated 9/16/11

it has been 3 weeks since my 30th birthday... so how did i do

1.      renew my passport - nope, we're broke.  this would be a" luxury" item.

2.      visit canada - see above.  need a passport to go to america jr. these days

3.      start an actual work out plan or start riding a bike 

4.      lose the rest of my baby weight + 10 - i still haven't lost the rest of my baby weight.  super sad. 

5.      bike out to crystal lake and back - no.  it's 40 mi r/t.  BUT, i did bike 40 mi this weekend.  cl is next!

6.      drink less soda 

7.     throw an awesome 30th birthday bash - in the works.  i can party when i want!

8.      develop a weekly plan for keeping our house clean 

9.      finish printing all my pre-baby photos and put them into albums - no.  see #1.  but we're at least to our honeymoon now...

10.  plant a garden 

11.  date night with husband at least twice a month 

12.  super secret Item-Run a Triathlon!

13.  take our first family vacation - see #1

14.  pay off (original- ie: ian's birth) hospital bills so we can pay off student loans and be debt free! 

15.  teach ian sign language 

16.  get my nose pierced- maybe? this is a no for now.  or ever.

17.  bake a cake from scratch 

18.  cloth diaper and cloth wipes 

19.  start a compost pile 

20.  make ian’s baby food myself  

21.  eat healthier- more cooking at home! 

22.  continue growing our marriage by working on the love dare - 75 days to go until completion!

23.  join the rest of the modern world with a smart phone 

24.  get rid of the clothes in my closet/drawers that i’m never going to wear again 

25.  have all my old camp/college tshirts made into quilts - see #1. 

26.  take ian to the georgia aquarium 

27. purge our own home of all the stuff we don't need. -

28.  file our financial documents- shred the junk! 

29.  visit at least 3 more ballparks  1.  cleveland.  2. no.  see #1.  but 2 to go. 

30.  drink at least 32 oz. water a day

i think i should've made one of my 30/30 items to get rich b\c perhaps we would have accomplished more items on this list.  but i think i've done pretty well.  plus, i'm marking one off this weekend.  so don't forget to come back & see what it is!!!!!!!!!  so 11 items to go after this weekend.  not too shabby.

change the way you use

i'm devoting my birthday week to all the little changes that have been made in our lives during the last 2 years.  yesterday i talked about the way we eat - today i'm going to talk about the way we use and how to be a better user and not a waster.

recycling:
i have not always been a recycler- it just isn't something that i see that's very prevalent in the south.  we recycled newspapers and magazines, but everything else- right in the trash.  when dave & i started dating, i noticed that everything is recycled here- it's part of the regular trash pickup.  when we bought our house in atlanta, i was interested in starting recycling up for our house, but there wasn't a pickup in our neighborhood- even where i nannied- which was in a nicer neighborhood- i didn't see a recycling pickup.  we decided to start on our own, but it took a little work on our behalf.  it's amazing how much trash recycling saved- we normally only had one bag of trash every other week (we took our own trash to a dumpster in our neighborhood).  even here we only have one bag of trash per week.  here's how to recycle in your area if you don't have a neighborhood pickup:  1.  recycling bins:  the sortera bins from ikea are excellent.  they come in 2 sizes and they easy stack.  they took up minimal room on our back porch- and since they have lids, the stuff inside stayed relatively dry when it rained.  they suffered their fair share of abuse- so when we moved up here, we threw them in with our last recycling drop off.  2.  www.earth911.com- when we were in atlanta, we entered our zip and found a facility only a few miles from our house.  3.  when our bins would fill up, we loaded them in the back of the car and dropped our stuff off.  we usually sorted our stuff- we had 3 bins (paper, plastic & glass/aluminum) to make it easy b\c you never knew what bins were going to be at the facility we were at.  we went to the same place for 2 years, yet every few weeks they would have completely changed how they wanted you to sort stuff. 

cutting down on waste and junk

anyone who's ever seen an episode of hoarders probably  has an immediate desire to throw away half the belongings in their home.  having a child has definitely brought more "stuff" into our homes and so we have had to purge our own belongings to make room for baby.  this is a continual work in progress.  we started by going through our closets and drawers and getting rid of stuff that we knew would no longer fit (bye bye size 0's) or stuff we just didn't wear anymore.  we bagged that stuff up- and tried plato's closet (i hate that place- don't go there), when that didn't work, i listed my stuff on smashion.  i am giving my stuff a few months to see how it does, and after that, it goes to goodwill.  dave's stuff went to a neighborhood pickup.  we are slowly going through closets and other bins and trying to get rid of stuff.  a few tips from lifehack.org:  obey the 12 month rule by throwing out anything you haven't used in 12 months- after 3 months re-evaluate and try to get rid of even more.  since we are trying to make a little money this is taking us a little longer- although my friend Tara brought up an excellent point once by saying it might be more cost-effective just to donate and take the tax write-off.  

another huge way we're saving on waste is by cloth diapering.  for those of you who are moms or who aren't and are really grossed out by this- yeah, it's a little gross.  is it any worse than a disposable diaper?  not really.  diapers are full of poop and poop is gross.  end of story.  ian still has to wear disposables at night b\c his skin is so sensitive, but the money we've saved in not buying diapers all the time has been tremendous.  not to mention all the garbage we save by not having to throw out up to 7-8 diapers a day.  they cost a lot up front depending on the route you go, but they were paid for in about 6 months- and i'm all for more money in my pocket.  plus, our water/energy bills haven't changed.  regardless, i will be so exciting when the diapering stage is over.  

the final part of cutting down on waste & junk is a new thing in our lives- composting.  i have wanted to do this for a long time and now that we are working on our own garden i have a better reason than ever! composting is an even better way to have less garbage than we already do...  bought lettuce w\ the intention of eating salad every day (oops) and now it's wilted?  compost it.  tired of your garbage smelling like coffee grounds- compost it.  it's amazing what kinds of junk can actually be composted.  we now have even less garbage, and i don't beat myself up if i find a little bit of rotten lettuce!  

reclaiming/reusing!

the final change we've made is through reclaiming/reusing.  by doing this we are not shelling out money for the little things- therefore, keeping money for what we actually need.  part of this stirs up my "hoarders" tendencies- that i don't want to throw anything away b\c certainly it can be used for something.  an awesome site for this is freecycle .  this is a great place to give and get stuff for free in your area.  when we were ready to start composting, i went out and bought a garbage can for about $20.  luckily, a few days later, someone posted an offer for a similar trashcan to the one i bought- we were able to claim it, pick it up and return the one we bought- $20 back in our pockets!!  i also may or may not have stolen a drawer for gardening from an abandoned dresser in front of my neighbor's house on garbage day a few weeks ago...  

i love seeing other people reclaim stuff b\c i definitely don't have the same creativity that a lot of people have.  i wanted to share with you a little etsy site that does just that- tea & tangerines.  tea & tangerines was started by friends mary & lauren (l is on the modsquad with me)- lovers of vintage & candles!  do you love candles, but hate when you get to the end of one only to have a useless jar- problem solved.  lauren & mary not only make the candles themselves, but put them in pretty vintage reclaimed containers.  once the candle is done- your pretty container can be used in any way you like!  they have a lot of cute candles in their newly opened shop- but also do custom orders if you like certain scents or are looking for a certain type of container.  my favorite is this one- the glass is so pretty + i love fresh grass scented anything! 

image

want to reclaim something as your own- right now tea & tangerines is offering a 15% discount when you use the code LEMMEGITTHAT.  come on, go check tea & tangerines out!

i hope you've enjoyed day 2 of my little changes birthday week.  have any additional ideas for ways we can continue to change how we use- i'd love to hear in your comments!

i resolve... june

not to make stupid resolutions this year that i will have forgotten about by... yesterday.

instead.  my "resolution" is to make a short list of attainable goals each month- and to share them with you.  sometimes later in the month than expected...

i'm running supes behind this month.  let's review my goals for may.

• sell stuff we don't need on ebay (move clothes from smashion if necessary).  i am happy to announce that we have made $300 selling stuff on ebay!!  i have also sold a few things on smashion.  i'm not even finished w\ all our ebay selling yet (more on this lately)
• drink more water.  i've really been slacking lately.  did ok for a couple weeks, still not drinking enough.
• go to bed earlier (revisiting this one b\c as soon as it came off my list, i just started doing it)- this one i'm back & forth on- it's after 2 am now...
• detox.  guys, this is so hard.  thinking about it scares me.  i have a HUGE sweet tooth.  i don't feel that i overeat when it comes to sweets, but i love them so much.  i also love dr. pepper.  it's embarrassing... mostly embarrassing to admit that i'm so weak.  done!!  guys, this seriously jump-started my weight loss.  weight loss to date:  8 lbs!  squee!
• 2 date nights.  done.  we had a couple movie nights at home and we had an out night going to see a friend's wife play w\ her band.
• be the bigger person when it comes to a certain family issue that i can't seem to let go of.  i can only control my own actions, not another person's.  done for what it needed to be done for.  this will continually be a work in progress.
• finish my book  done
• practice patience with ian as his molars are coming in and i want to wring his adorable neck while he screams at me all day (6 hours, anyone?) (and i'm not going to really wring his neck, fyi, so don't report me to defacs)  boy, that was a miserable week, and ian is the proud owner of 6 new teeth (yikes!)
• 30/30.  2 items.  done...  can you find what i marked off?

june goals:

• drink water like it's my job
• don't be so tied up online- manage my time better for blogging & working
• lose 4 more lbs!
• sell a little more on ebay
• have an awesome birthday
• work on the list- it's definitely not going to be completed.

i'm definitely slacking for ideas this month... but this is enough to carry me through for the next couple weeks!!

mommy reads: garden anywhere

i recently finished garden anywhere by alys fowler.  inspired by my desire to grow a garden for my 30/30 i read this book because i was basically clueless.  now i am even more clueless.  not really... ok, a little.  seriously though- i almost think i would've been better just going it myself- not b\c the book isn't well written or b\c alys isn't brilliant, b\c it is, and she is.  but there is so much to gardening, and now that i've read all her tips, i feel like i should be following her rules to the letter- and it's just so involved.  if i had done it myself, i probably just would've went and thrown everything into the same spot, but now... i can't.  or at least, i don't think i can...

alys shows you that you really can garden anywhere- from your lush, giant backyard, to 1 tiny window box.  from food to flowers- it's all there.  she even tells you how to start making your own compost, or how to worm compost (eww!). i'm so excited about starting a compost pile b\c this is also on my 30/30 list.  i'm also excited about gardening... if it ever gets warm enough for the love of a loving God.  this books is full of helpful tips and beautiful pictures.  i know i'll be a better gardener for it, once i get over my neuroses.  and this will be one of those books that i have with me while i'm gardening- reading to make sure i'm doing everything right b\c i'm crazy like that...  so if you're curious about gardening and want to have a garden, but not sure you have the space that allows for it- i definitely recommend you pick this book up.  i can't wait to show off my gardening skills... you know, if it ever warms up.

30 before thirty update

i wanted to review my 30 before thirty now that we are coming in on 2 months to go!  some items needed an update or an edit as well!   look for the edits below the 1st list...

1.      renew my passport 
2.      visit canada 
3.      start an actual work out plan or start riding a bike 
4.      lose the rest of my baby weight + 10 
5.      bike out to crystal lake and back 
6.      drink less soda 
7.      visit babyland general  CHANGED
8.      develop a weekly plan for keeping our house clean 
9.      finish printing all my pre-baby photos and put them into albums 
10.  plant a garden 
11.  date night with husband twice a month 
12.  finish watching all of the academy awards best pictures or afi top 100     CHANGED-
13.  take our first family vacation 
14.  pay off hospital bills so we can pay off student loans and be debt free! 
15.  teach ian sign language 
16.  get my nose pierced- maybe? 
17.  bake a cake from scratch 
18.  cloth diaper and cloth wipes 
19.  start a compost pile 
20.  make ian’s baby food myself   (done)
21.  eat healthier- more cooking at home! 
22.  finish the love dare  CHANGED
23.  join the rest of the modern world with a smart phone 
24.  get rid of the clothes in my closet/drawers that i’m never going to wear again 
25.  have all my old camp/college tshirts made into quilts 
26.  take ian to the georgia aquarium 
27.  get rid of our junk- have a yard sale at my parents home   CHANGED
28.  file our financial documents- shred the junk! 
29.  visit at least 5 more ballparks  CHANGED
30.  drink at least 32 oz. water a day

7.  This just isn't going to happen since I don't live in GA anymore - it's completely out of the way on a drive to atlanta.  need an idea!
12.  This has been changed to something else.  I just don't have enough time to watch that many movies.  What i changed it to is a secret.  It will not be completed before i'm 30 b\c the event is not until July.  But it's on the calendar. New Item:  Super Secret Item
22.  we're 200+ days into the love dare, but it's not going to be finished by the time my bday rolls around.  we'll still have about 85 days to go.  we must have started later than i though- plus Dave forgets to pack the book every time we go somewhere.  New Item:  Keep working toward finishing the love dare
27.  my grandparents have been gone for 5+ years and all the stuff at mom & dad's house is no closer to being put into a yard sale.  plus, being away from Atlanta just makes sorting through that stuff and selling it nearly impossible.  New Item:  Purge the junk at the house we actually live in.
29.  5 ballparks is really difficult- that's 5 trips, plus i already have a family vacay thrown in- which also looks impossible...  New Item:  Visit 3 ballparks.  

my new 30 before thirty

1.      renew my passport 
2.      visit canada 
3.      start an actual work out plan or start riding a bike 
4.      lose the rest of my baby weight + 10 
5.      bike out to crystal lake and back 
6.      drink less soda 
7.     NEED YOUR IDEAS
8.      develop a weekly plan for keeping our house clean 
9.      finish printing all my pre-baby photos and put them into albums 
10.  plant a garden 
11.  date night with husband twice a month 
12.  super secret Item
13.  take our first family vacation 
14.  pay off hospital bills so we can pay off student loans and be debt free! 
15.  teach ian sign language 
16.  get my nose pierced- maybe? 
17.  bake a cake from scratch 
18.  cloth diaper and cloth wipes 
19.  start a compost pile 
20.  make ian’s baby food myself  
21.  eat healthier- more cooking at home! 
22.  continue growing our marriage by working on the love dare
23.  join the rest of the modern world with a smart phone 
24.  get rid of the clothes in my closet/drawers that i’m never going to wear again 
25.  have all my old camp/college tshirts made into quilts 
26.  take ian to the georgia aquarium 
27. purge our own home of all the stuff we don't need.
28.  file our financial documents- shred the junk! 
29.  visit at least 3 more ballparks 
30.  drink at least 32 oz. water a day

so what should i change my newest item to?! 

i resolve... april

not to make stupid resolutions this year that i will have forgotten about by... yesterday.

instead.  my "resolution" is to make a short list of attainable goals each month- and to share them with you.

i'm getting earlier with my posts... that's good.  let's review my goals for march.  i feel like i kicked some serious tail this month!

• go to bed before 2 AM ---maybe i did this 3 times...
• list clothes on smashion --- boo.  ya.  smashion is like ebay in that listing stuff takes for.  ev.  er.  it probably took me 4 hours or more to upload all of this stuff- and i don't plan on keeping it all up for months until it sales.  if it's not gone by a certain point- it's off to goodwill.  so, buy this stuff.   seriously- i want it out of my house.  shop
• seriously, clean your house, it's a disaster. --- we tried to take on a "project" per weekend on top of making extra efforts to clean.  our 4 projects:  1.  dig out backyard jungle weeds for future garden.  2.  fold and hang 6 weeks months of laundry that we i had lying around.  3.  clean out from under our bed (how did that stuff even get there?!).  4.  organize, try on and pull clothes & list them on smashion.
• finish something else on the 30/30 ---while i was unable to mark anything off the list, i did print more  pictures (#9) and started getting serious about date nights (#11).  ok, wait.  we did FINALLY pay off the hospital bills from having Ian (#14), but now we have hospital bills from the er visit.  i'm conflicted about whether or not this can be crossed off the list. 
• read 2 books --- yes!  (although i just finished the 2nd last night).  i finished butterfield 8 and another book having to do w\ my 30/30.  it's a secret.
• have 2 "date" nights with husband.  one where we stay at home and the other where we actually pretend like we have lives and we leave our house without our child (we will leave our child with someone, not alone if you were wondering).  --- we did have our at home date night.  we made a special dinner together and snuggled together for a movie.  we never got a chance to go out b\c dave's parents were on vacation during our free weekends.  we did have more than one at home date night. 
• see to it that the first day of spring arrives in the midwest.  i curse you snow, i curse you with 1000 curses. --- even i can't make the seasons change and that groundhog is a filthy liar.  it snowed at least twice this month.  40 degrees is not spring.
• win march madness (or my husband can win... what's yours is mine...) --- talk about the fail of the century.  i don't watch college bb, but i love march madness- this year's tournament was totally whack.  dave & i finished in a tie for 2nd to last place out of 24 brackets.  the pool was decided before we even got to the final four b\c everyone's teams were eliminated except for the winner who had 1 final four team.  sad.  i don't wanna talk about it.

and now for april!

• finish 2 more books
• finish 2 more 30/30 items.  
• don't spend any extra money on crap this month.  approved items are:  tv with tax money (planned ahead), lunch this weekend w\ friends we haven't seen since october.  easter basket goodies for ian.  out of the house date.  trip to milwaukee to see the braves (tickets are $0.75).  all of this total (not including the tv should cost less than $100).  
• 2 date nights.  1 at home.  1 out.
• lose 2 lbs.  i didn't bother with this in march, but i'm coming back to it.  it's been 8 weeks now- the weight has got to start coming off.  i'm busting my butt.  
• figure out how to spend/save the remaining tax money.  we could pay off ian's hospital bills in full, but would like to save some money as well.
• cash in my bonds.  they're earning about $0.25 a year.  ridiculous.

we'll check back to see how i did in a few weeks!!

i resolve... march

not to make stupid resolutions this year that i will have forgotten about by... yesterday.

instead.  my "resolution" is to make a short list of attainable goals each month- and to share them with you.

ok, so we're a little over a week into march, but again i already have goals in place.  first, let's revisit february's goals:

no, first let me say what a wretched month february was.  my son acted a fool for 3+ weeks, we had a blizzard, my child went to the hospital and dr's office 800 times, and i basically just wanted to move to a desert island...

ok...

• lose 5 lbs.  i'm telling you- my scale must be broken.  first it kept telling me i GAINED 5 lbs, and now it says i've gained 2 lbs.  i can't figure out wth is going on.  did i mention that i'm working out 6, yes, SIX days a week (this is week 4) and i have GAINED weight?!?!  this is why i don't work out.
• finish reading that darn book already  notice i crossed it out, yet kept it bold?  i did not finish THAT book, but i read 2 other books.  i will get to that book one day. 
• complete 2 more items on my 30 before thirty list  i feel like i have been doing this list long enough to say i've accomplished at least one of these things:  #21: eat healthier by cooking more at home
• go to bed before 2 AM (to most of you, this is probably crazy, but i have a lot of trouble winding down- this is a HUGE deal for me)  once again, a little of both.  some days i succeeded and some days i was up until after 3.  i need ambiens. 
• start listing clothes on smashion  i thought about it.  really i did. 
• start implementing the cleaning plan  see above...

and now, my goals for march (where i promise not to be such a slacker):

• go to bed before 2 AM (it's 2:15 already...  le sigh).
• list clothes on smashion
• seriously, clean your house, it's a disaster.
• finish something else on the 30/30
• read 2 books
• have 2 "date" nights with husband.  one where we stay at home and the other where we actually pretend like we have lives and we leave our house without our child (we will leave our child with someone, not alone if you were wondering).  
• see to it that the first day of spring arrives in the midwest.  i curse you snow, i curse you with 1000 curses.
• win march madness (or my husband can win... what's yours is mine...)

i resolve... february

not to make stupid resolutions this year that i will have forgotten about by... yesterday.

instead.  my "resolution" is to make a short list of attainable goals each month- and to share them with you.

once again, we're almost halfway through the month, but i've had my list going.  first, let's revisit january's goals:

• sign up for mentor program for my biggest 30 before thirty goal - done!!
• start working out.  for reals.  find a gym- husband's company will reimburse- so do it!  - done- not until february, but done nonetheless!
• use lotion on my hands EVERY night (this is silly, but i hate that the air is so dry my skin splits) - done!
• lose 5 pounds.  starting weight: 1X6 - not done, but a pair of pants i couldn't wear a few weeks ago, i can wear now, so i've lost something!!
• finish the book listed on my blog.  that i haven't even started....  - not done.  ugh.  not a good month for reading...
• complete 2 items on my 30 before thirty list (some of these goals should help) done!!  #3 (start a work out plan and start working out), and #28- (file our financial documents and shred the junk)
• type up the "chore list"  - done!  now, to start doing the chores... ai yi yi
• start/finish the "remodeling" on one of the bathrooms - done!  not only did we do our bathroom, we finished ian's as well.  pictures to come!

and now, my goals for february:

• lose 5 lbs.  
• finish reading that darn book already
• complete 2 more items on my 30 before thirty list
• go to bed before 2 AM (to most of you, this is probably crazy, but i have a lot of trouble winding down- this is a HUGE deal for me)
• start listing clothes on smashion
• start implementing the cleaning plan

i'll check back in with you on these in 2 weeks!!

i resolve... january

not to make stupid resolutions this year that i will have forgotten about by... yesterday.

instead.  my "resolution" is to make a short list of attainable goals each month- and to share them with you.

we're almost halfway through january, but i made my list last week, and i've already started working on it!  wahoo!

january goals:

• sign up for mentor program for my biggest 30 before thirty goal
• start working out.  for reals.  find a gym- husband's company will reimburse- so do it!
• use lotion on my hands EVERY night (this is silly, but i hate that the air is so dry my skin splits)
• lose 5 pounds.  starting weight: 1X6
• finish the book listed on my blog.  that i haven't even started....
• complete 2 items on my 30 before thirty list (some of these goals should help)
• type up the "chore list"
• start/finish the "remodeling" on one of the bathrooms

we're starting slow.  here we go........

Guest Post- Teaching Your First Baby Signs

working my way through my 30 before thirty- #15 - teach ian sign language.  more on my experiences later!

Teaching Your First Baby Signs

Baby sign language is a way of teaching your baby to communicate by way of simple hand gestures. Based on ASL (American Sign Language), it is a simplified version especially for babies and children. Baby Sign Language is fun, free and it really works – you can start to sign from birth. Read on to find out how to teach your first Baby Signs.

How To Start

It’s best to begin with signs you can use on a daily basis, such as Mommy, Daddy, Milk and More. More is (probably not surprisingly) often the first sign a baby learns. Signs that represent something exciting to your baby will be easier for him or her to learn. Here is how to make these first signs:

* To sign Mommy extend and spread apart your fingers. With your pinkie facing forward, tap your thumb on your chin.

* To sign Daddy, extend and spread out your five fingers on your right hand. Tap your hand on your forehead. Done right you will look like a turkey.

* The sign for Milk is a lot like milking a cow, but without the vertical motion – you are just squeezing the udder. Take both hands, make them into a fist, relax, and repeat.

* To make the sign for More, flatten out your hands then bring your thumbs under to make an O shape. Then, bring your hands together and separate them repeatedly. Baby will often simplify More by clapping their fists together. As they get older and more proficient you may want to encourage the more correct sign of flattening out their hands and creating the O shape with their thumbs as a fun way to help them develop fine motor skills.

Teaching Signs

To successfully teach these signs, you need to make the sign every time you say the relevant word to your baby. Say the word that goes with the sign clearly, with good eye contact, while pointing to the thing or person you are describing. Be sure to sign when your baby is alert and not fussing or tired, using an object which is exciting to him, such as Milk or Mummy. Practice the signs beforehand so you feel confident and clear about what you are doing. It’s important to repeat the sign as often as possible – make the sign and say the word every time you do an action or use an object. Babies learn through repetition, so try to make signing a fun part of your day.

Be Patient

Don’t expect too much too soon. Your baby is unlikely to be signing for more milk if he is only 4 months old and you’ve been signing to him for a week! Research by Dr. Joseph Garcia, one of the founders of Baby Sign Language , found that a typical baby who starts learning signs at seven months old needs about two months of repetition and exposure to a sign to start using it.

so smart

well, i've done it!  i've marked another item off the 30 before thirty list!

#23 join the rest of the modern world with a smart phone.  or as one of my husband's friends said to him, "welcome to 2003."  i think 2003 is a huuuuuge stretch...


our contracts were finally up on the garbage phones we had, and we started shopping around- we compared companies and narrowed it down to 2 that had the best deal- t-mobile or sprint. i am huge on customer loyalty, and i've been with t-mobile since 2003.  the other good deal was with sprint.  boo.  i finally talked husband into staying w\ tmo, so we headed to the store to get our new phones.  however we got there only to encounter a problem:  we had switched to the "everything plus" family plan last august, which is a "no contract" plan meaning we were no longer eligible for deals and upgrades.  uh oh.  our awesome sales guy put us on the line w\ customer care, but while we were holding, the mall was about to close, so we said we'd try again on saturday. 

so we get up saturday morning and husband puts a call into to customer care- he talks to kim (we don't know you, but you're awesome) tells her the situation (we were among the first customers to switch to this new plan, so we were never informed that we couldn't "switch back") and that was that.  kim gave us the hook up, and we were free to get new phones.

i feel so smart now.  not only can i text with ease, access my email and facebook, and upload photos of the helmet full of nachos we ate at wrigley, but my phone is no longer a danger to anyone around it.  i will no longer reach into my pocket for my phone and slice my finger open.  that happened.

behold:

*notice in the top picture, the buttons on my old phone are missing, and the metal is folded up.  oh, and the phone doesn't have a back cover. 

i <3 you smart phone!

myobf

#20 on the 30 before thirty - make ian's baby food.  let's just say the making of it is easier than figuring out when to give him what, when to start mixing, and what to mix.  sheesh.  behold, i will show you how to myobf (that's make your own baby food)...

i went with sweet potatoes- which will be food #2 3 that we are introducing.  we started with acorn squash, which made ian's skin break out, and if i had to write a blog on how to make baby avocado- then i shouldn't be blogging. 

i decided to make ian's baby food because of how easy everyone said it was + i'm always here + i love to cook + i have nothing better to do.  it also tastes better- have you ever eaten jarred baby food?  at my baby shower, we played a game where i was blindfolded and had to taste several different flavors of baby food and identify them.  i didn't do well- you couldn't even tell what many of them were!  ick!  fresh food just tastes better!  i also think it helps us to eat healthier- i just buy extra- cook it all at once, and then there's enough for husband & i to have what ian has.  more veggies = healthier.  healthier = thinner.  thinner = me fitting into my clothes.

here's how easy it is!  myobf- sweet potato style. 

1.  scrub your potatoes.

2.   prick holes into the potatoes

(those poor potatoes)

 

3.   microwave potatoes until tender (you can also bake in the oven for 60 min, but this was much quicker).

4.  remove potatoes from microwave carefully (hot potato isn't just a game- it's a fact).  slice potatoes open to let cool- this way you can handle them without receiving 3rd degree burns.

 

5.  scoop the delicious, orange sweet potatoey flesh out and into your blender/food processor.

 

6.  add 1\2 cup of water to potatoes and puree to desired consistency, adding more water if necessary.

 

7.  desired consistency.  

 

8.  pour potatoes into ice cube trays if freezing (i suggest freezing because most foods are good for a month- some 2 months, while refrigerated food needs to be used within days).  i got my trays from my Fresh Baby So Easy Baby Food Kit, but you can buy them anywhere for cheap!

9.  freeze 8-10 hours or overnight!

10.  once frozen, remove cubes from trays and store in ziploc baggies.  be sure to label baggies with date and food.  my potatoes were still frozen, but here are my frozen apricots & acorn squash!

and there you have, 10 easy steps to making your own baby food- all it takes is 30 minutes.  done and done.